Indigenous communities meet in Ecuador to demand end to extractive industries

Indigenous communities in the Amazon basin face problems, including oil spills, deforestation, and pollution of rivers by both legal and illegal mining, all of which negatively affects people and wildlife, the leaders added.

Indigenous leaders from nine countries in the Amazon basin met in Ecuador on Tuesday and demanded South America governments halt extractive industries which damage the rainforest, urging them to respect agreements and legal rulings recognizing communities’ rights over territories.